To Market, to Market to Buy a Fat Pig…

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by Crystal Laine Miller

“…Home again, home again, jiggedty-jig!”

How many times did we sing that song as kids? And we caught many product commercials on our three-channel TV that we noticed from singing the interesting jingles.

Well, guess what? Authors have to market their product too, in interesting ways. Here are a few tips from a well-read reader-me.

You may have to lick a few stamps to get results!

First, do get a web presence of name recognition, if possible even before you ever shop your manuscript or as soon as possible. Whether you do blogging, a website, commenting on other blogs, guest/interview or group blogs, book review sites, Facebook, Twitter, topic blogs, or all the above, these help.

Please, puhlease, do not flood your readers or networks with constant marketing and talking about your books only. What I mean is when the only thing you contact people with is to beg people to read your book, that’s not cool. It’s a delicate balance. Yes, you want people to be aware of your book, and yes, they want to know. But sometimes talk about things that interest them (or you.)

Two of my favorite author group blogs are Seekerville and Girls Write Out. Both are group blogs where they take turns blogging about a topic on their minds. We always know when they have a book coming out, true, but most of the time they are blogging about things that just interest us. Seekerville dishes out virtual buffets! Yum. No calories! Just chatting with these authors in the comments (they comment back) and next thing you know, you’re checking on their latest book.

Indiana’s Own Denise Hunter has one of the best author pages on Facebook. She doesn’t just upload her book covers and link to her website. She has conversations with us. (And she’s introverted, like most of us.) Another Hoosier, Diann Hunt, has an author blog that is engaging, fun and poignant.

But if you’re looking for marketing advice, here are some to help you with that all-illusive platform.

1. I can’t tell you how many of Michael Hyatt’s blogs I’ve copied to put into my file to study. He is a master of marketing. He has so much information: Why You Need to Be Building Your Platform Now by Michael Hyatt

2. I caught this blog entry on the WordServe Agency’s client blog on what you can be doing for marketing at WordServe Water Cooler:

Creative Marketing: Try Something New by Karen Witemeyer

3. Check out MacGregor Literary’s agent, Amanda Luedeke on Facebook and Thursday’s blog, as she’s doing interesting things.

Your readers may have gone to town to buy a pig, but with good marketing in advance, they could come home with a cow, a few magic beans and your book too.


Crystal Laine Miller is a Mostly Homespun, Thoroughly Hoosier Christian writer living a gritty, joyful life with her ER Doc husband, Scottie dog, Westie dog and Super Cat, Nermal. You can enjoy her insights at http://wheniwasjustakid.blogspot.com.

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